7 Things To Know About Sen. Tim Scott Ahead Of Discussion With Trump On Race

Who is Sen. Tim Scott, and what will this Black conservative bring to the table?

President Donald Trump doesn’t have a good track record of listening to his Black friends about race. Ask his longtime friend, music mogul Russell Simmons,who penned an open letter to Trump after the president’s “there’s blame on both sides” speech, following White supremacist violence in Charlottesville. In the letter, Simmons urged Trump to “wake the f— up.”

Another prominent African American, someone who barely knows the president, will take a shot at discussing race with Trump.

CNN reports that Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina will have a one-on-one meeting with the president on Wednesday.

According to the news outlet, Scott will discuss Charlottesville and specific issues facing people of color with Trump. The only Black GOP senator will speak to the president from a personal perspective and try to convince the president to have “more personal interaction with people of color.”

Following the violence in Charlottesville, Scott appeared on CBS News’ “Face The Nation” and said the president should “sit down and become better acquainted- have a personal connection to the painful history of racism and bigotry of this country,” recommending that Trump meet with Black people who “endured the pain of the ‘60s.”

Here are seven things to know about Scott, ahead of his sit-down with the president.

1. Grew up poor

Scott’s Senate biography page states that he grew up poor in North Charleston, South Carolina. Scott, 51, and his siblings were raised by a single mother who worked as a nurse’s assistant.

2. Education and career

He graduated from Charleston Southern University in 1988 with a bachelor’s degree in political science. Scott worked in the real estate and insurance industries. He was the owner of Tim Scott Allstate and a partner of Pathway Real Estate Group, according to The Washington Post.

3. Conservative Republican

The senator was a committed conservative from the beginning of his political career. He won an at-large seat on the Charleston City Council, helping Republicans dismiss charges from local civil rights leaders who argued that an African American could not win a citywide contest.

4. First Black senator

Scott’s political career blossomed and led the Tea Party-back Republican to become the first Black senator from the South since Reconstruction.

5. Rejected Congressional Black Caucus invitation

He declined an invitation to join the Congressional Black Caucus after getting elected to the House of Representatives. In a statement Scott explained, “While I recognize the efforts of the CBC and appreciate their invitation for me to caucus with them, I will not be joining at this time. My campaign was never about race.”

6. Spoke out about racist encounters with police

Scott has spoken out about a racist encounter with a Capitol Police officer who did not recognize him, as well as recounted an incident in which a police officer pulled over his brother—a high ranking enlisted member of U.S. Army—and asked if the Volvo he was driving is stolen.

7. Racial healing

Scott promotes racial healing through “Solution Sundays,” invitations to families of different racial and ethnic backgrounds to sit down to a meal together.